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Former London Mayor Joe Fontana ends long political career by dodging the media

London mayor Joe Fontana leaves the court house with his wife, Vicky, after being found guilty on three fraud related charges in London, Ontario on Friday June 13, 2014. Fontana will be sentenced on July 15. (Free Press file photo)

Joe Fontana thought he could talk his way out of any problem, but is walking away without saying a word.

The former London mayor climbed from east-end city councillor to the corridors of Canadian political power, largely thanks to his greatest skill — undeniable charm.

He used it to carve out one of the most successful political careers in London history.

When he sought a return to London politics, the ex-MP convinced voters his massive promises were realistic, and in 2010 became mayor.

When he was arrested in November 2012, despite legal advice to keep quiet he ­chit-chatted for more than an hour with the RCMP ­interrogator who would subsequently grill him.

And in court last month he took the stand in his own trial, a ­decision some legal observers believe sank his defence and sealed his fate.

But now?

Total silence.

After a promise to face the public and speak to the media Thursday, Fontana’s former office staff issued a last-minute cancellation. Free Press efforts to reach him were unsuccessful.

Gord Cudmore, Fontana’s defence lawyer, said he consulted his client about the wisdom of calling a final news conference with sentencing set for July 15.

“We discussed it and we felt it was not necessary or appropriate, given that the matter is still before the courts,” Cudmore told the Free Press.

Fontana was convicted last week of three charges — breach of trust by a public official, fraud under $5,000 and uttering forged documents — relating to a doctored $1,700 expense he charged taxpayers in 2005, when he was a Liberal MP and cabinet minister.

In the wake of the nixed news conference, some people will wonder: What’s really left to say, anyway?

But some issues still need to be addressed:

Is Fontana going to say sorry to the public?

Does he plan to appeal?

What is he saying to citizens who supported him for years, even decades?

Above all that, though, Fontana’s disastrous testimony raised a question that hasn’t been answered yet — but deserves to be.

In his riveting cross-examination, assistant Crown attorney Tim Zuber asked the mayor about his 18 years as an MP and the $1,700 Marconi Club contract he forged and submitted as an expense.

Zuber’s question was simple: Did he ever submit any other altered documents while MP?

Fontana’s answer was startling: “I don’t recall but probably not.”

Probably not?

Not “never.” Not “no way.” But “probably not.”

Earlier in the same cross-examination, asked by the prosecutor how many documents he falsified as an MP, Fontana said “none.”

That leaves all kinds of questions Fontana may never have to address.

Instead of a news conference, the mayor’s office issued a media release Thursday praising Fontana’s years of service and noting he’s “always been committed to the city of London and its residents.”

In it, he’s quoted as saying he “will not return to public life,” which suggests this is the end of the political road. Fontana, of course, wasn’t available to clarify.

The ex-mayor, resigning in disgrace, promised to face the media, the proxy of the public.